


Expensive Mistakes

by An_Optimist_Prime



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Hux and Kylo are still bad people, Kinda, M/M, Misunderstandings, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating May Change, Redemption, resistance!Hux, the First Order is terrible for everyone
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:48:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25334152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/An_Optimist_Prime/pseuds/An_Optimist_Prime
Summary: As Hux helps Dameron and FN-2187 escape to the rusted excuse of a smuggler ship they call the Millennium Falcon, it hits him all at once.He’s going to have to leave with them.With theResistance.-Or, the one where Hux decides to go with the Resistance rather than face Pryde, and accidently makes friends, grows a conscience, and falls in love along the way.
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 72
Kudos: 194





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I’ve finally begun posting this fic, which I’ve been promising to write since The Rise of Skywalker came out. This is going to be a very character-driven and focussed story, so heads up with that. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy it :)
> 
> The title comes from the song ‘Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)’ by Fall Out Boy. Which just gives me major kylux vibes.
> 
> A huge thanks to my beta-readers: [MellytheHun](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MellytheHun/pseuds/MellytheHun), [Tails89](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tails89/pseuds/Tails89), and [Othelle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/zeapear/pseuds/Othelle)!

***

As Hux helps Dameron and FN-2187 escape to the rusted excuse of a smuggler ship they call the Millennium Falcon, it hits him all at once.

He’s going to have to leave with them.

With the _Resistance_.

The thought almost makes him stop in his tracks.

He doesn’t want to betray the First Order, but Ren has left him no choice. Since Snoke’s death, Ren had taken the First Order and had warped it, mangled it into something that was becoming increasingly unrecognisable. Not to mention Snoke’s death itself. Despite what Ren had said, there was no way that the girl had the power to kill Snoke alone. At best, Ren had helped the girl kill their Supreme Leader.

At worst, Ren did it all himself.

All of this was coupled with the fact that Ren had demoted him, removed him from the Finalizer, and rejected his advice and counsel just on principle, all of which had become too grating to continue to ignore.

Ren had taken the First Order from him, everything he’d given his mind, body, and soul to achieve. And for that, Ren had to lose.

And for Ren to lose, it meant helping the Resistance.

And now, that meant leaving with them.

A cold feeling of dread washes over him. Surely, there must be another way. Perhaps he could get the former stormtrooper to shoot him, and just say that he’d been overpowered by the escaping Resistance fighters? No, that alibi is too weak. Pryde has always been dismissive of him, but as of late he’s been suspicious as well. The Allegiant General is arrogant, but not stupid, and Hux isn’t completely sure how much longer he could continue bluffing him.

More to the point, he knows all too well what happens to people who betray the First Order. He would be killed for it, and it would not be quick or merciful. Death or defection, that is his choice right now. It’s a difficult choice, but not an impossible one.

They reach the turbolift down to the landing bay, and he follows them in.

“What are you doing?” FN-2187 asks.

“What does it look like?” Hux replies, as the turbolift begins to descend. From the silent look he’s getting from the former stormtrooper, he can only assume that he doesn’t have a clue. “I’m defecting.”

The words feel strange as he says them, and his heartbeat speeds up.

_This is only temporary_ , he thinks, trying to centre himself. Yes, this is just a minor setback. He’ll escape with the Resistance now, and find his way back to the Order later.

“You?” FN-2187 says, his tone a mix of surprise and disbelief. “Defecting? From the First Order?”

The doors of the turbolift open as they reach the correct floor. Two stormtroopers are unfortunately waiting for them.

“Yes!” Hux says, his patience thinning as he shoots the stormtroopers down. “What else would I be defecting from?”

FN-2187 stops in his tracks, which is frustrating, because Hux knows how long it will take for reinforcements to arrive, and they really do not have time for this.

“Why?” he asks.

Why is he defecting from the First Order, the organisation he’d spent his whole life working for? It’s almost a paradox. He believes in it so much, that he cannot stand by and watch while Kylo Ren runs it into the ground. That, in a calculated but still desperate move, he’s sold out a part of it in an attempt to save all of it, somewhere down the line.

He would be a liar if he said that bitterness isn’t an aspect of it too. He wants to see Ren’s world burn around him, to see for himself the look in the man’s eyes when he realises that he’s lost everything. He wants Ren to know he’s the one responsible for it, too. That, in the end, he managed to defeat him, on his wits alone.

But these answers won’t appeal to the virtuous and naïve ideals of the Resistance.

“I can help you defeat Kylo Ren, and the Final Order.” Hux says, instead. It’s not a whole truth, but it’s enough of the truth that it’s not a complete lie either. “I have insider information you need.”

After all, he doesn’t care who wins this battle so long as Ren loses it. Right now, the Resistance represents the best chance of that happening.

The former stormtrooper looks to Dameron for guidance, who stares at him for a moment before speaking.

“You’re serious? About defecting from the Order?” Dameron asks.

“Yes!” Hux snaps, getting frustrated about how many times they’re making him say it. “I am defecting from the First Order and joining the Resistance!”

There’s a moment of tense silence where Hux thinks that they might actually leave him behind, Resistance ideals be damned, before Dameron begins to cackle.

“First a stormtrooper, now a general!” Dameron hollers. “I’m on a roll!”

Hux elects to ignore that comment, and follows them onto the ship.

***

The girl doesn’t notice him at first.

It’s not until they’ve been in hyperspeed for close to twenty minutes that she notices that the Falcon has an extra passenger. It’s not completely her fault. He’s been sitting there, completely silent, for the journey so far.

“What’s he doing here?” She asks, a quizzical look on her face.

“I defected,” Hux says, and fuck, it’s surreal at this point. It’s just starting to sink in, exactly what he’s done, and what he will probably have to do from this point on.

He tries to ignore the way his hands shake.

“Is that true?” The girl asks, not to him, but to her companions.

“Yeah, he helped us escape.” FN-2187 answers.

“Huh,” the girl says, but doesn’t elaborate. Instead, she takes the seat across from him.

So here she is, the girl that Ren has been hunting down for over a year. The girl who supposedly killed Snoke, and overpowered both the Praetorian guards and Ren himself.

_She doesn’t look capable of it_ , Hux thinks. Another strike against Ren, then.

But, looks are so often deceiving. Hux has only met a handful of force users in his lifetime; Snoke, Ren, and his knights, to be specific. He knows how cruel they can be. The girl is likely no different, when it comes down to it.

She’s watching him, her gaze inquisitive. It shows her youth.

“Can I help you?” Hux says, his tone withering. He almost tacks _scavenger_ on the end but holds his tongue. Now is not the time or place to be antagonising potentially dangerous people.

“You helped them escape. _You_.” The girl says. “General Hux, the Starkiller.”

Hux shrugs. He can’t quite believe what he’s done, either.

“Why?” the girl presses. She’s staring intently at him, head tilted just slightly to one side. It’s like she’s studying him, and suddenly, Hux knows exactly what she’s doing.

“Stay out of my head!” Hux hisses. She’s obviously trying to find a way into his mind, like Snoke used to. 

“I’m not--” the scavenger starts, but Hux won’t hear it. Before she can say or do anything else, he stands, and moves to the back of the ship.

***

Hux is woken from his fitful sleep rather suddenly when he’s thrown from his seat into the wall opposite. He braces for another impact, but none comes.

The ship must have had a rough landing. He hastily makes his way to the cockpit.

“What was that?!” Hux demands to know. He’s probably going to have bruises.

“The landing struts were damaged,” Dameron replies, shrugging. Hux looks past him, through the viewport. The landscape of the planet is rough and ragged. There is no visible infrastructure.

“This is the Resistance base?” Hux asks, because it’s certainly not what he expected.

“No, this is Kef Bir,” Dameron replies, standing up out of the pilot’s seat.

Hux freezes. What were they doing on the moon that housed the wreckage of the second Deathstar? What if they run into Ren? “Why are we here?”

“Rey says we need to find some kind of sith artefact,” Dameron explains, as he moves towards the exit. “A wayfinder, or something. Come on, let’s check the damage.”

Hux sighs, but follows after. It’s going to be a long day.

***

“You’re not too bad at this.” Dameron says, as they work on repairing the Falcon. Despite the rough landing, the ship is mostly intact, if in need of critical repairs. They’re being helped by a group of First Order defectors, the traitorous Company 77. Their leader, a young woman who now goes by the name of Jannah, had not been thrilled at his presence, so he helps Dameron instead.

“I have some experience, from the Academy,” Hux admits, as he works on repairing a console. He’s actually a fully qualified engineer, and had personally designed both Starkiller and the Finalizer, among other things. Not that Dameron needs to know any of that.

“Well, aren’t you full of surprises,” Dameron says, as he cleans his hands with a rag.

Hux shrugs, and keeps trying to fix the console he’s working on. He finds he doesn’t mind the task. It keeps him busy, and keeps his mind off the fact that he’s defected from the Order, and stranded with the Resistance on some outer-rim moon.

He manages to reconnect the plasma converter, and pulls his arms out of the console. His uniform sleeves are covered in grease.

“These are for you, by the way,” Dameron says, throwing a bag towards him. Inside is a change of clothing. “You don’t want to turn up to the Resistance dressed like that.”

Dameron probably has a point. Still, it still takes him a minute to force himself onto his feet. He grabs the offered clothing and moves into one of the siderooms to change.

The clothing is simple. It consists of black pants, a white shirt, and a grey jacket with a hood. All of the items are just slightly too large, and the fabric is rougher than what he’s used to. He keeps his Order standard boots and dogtags, but discards everything else.

He considers keeping his greatcoat too, but makes himself leave it behind as well, and then chides himself for the sentimentality. _This is just temporary_ , he reminds himself. Someday, he’ll get back to the Order. But right now, his priority is to convince the Resistance that his defection is genuine.

Hux sighs, and runs his hand through his hair. The gel is starting to wear out. As he walks out, he checks his appearance in a panel of particularly reflective transparisteel. 

He barely recognises himself.

***

By the time they make it to the Resistance base on Ajan Kloss, they’ve lost the girl.

To make matters worse, it’s there that they receive the news that General Organa is dead. It’s a pity. Part of him had wanted to meet the woman. She had his begrudging respect for being able to take a collection of second-rate spacecrafts and turn it into a fleet capable of destroying Starkiller.

Understandably, the base is somber. 

Hux keeps the hood of his jacket up, and trails Dameron. Nobody has noticed him yet, and at the moment, that’s probably for the best. He follows him into the central war room of the Resistance base. Even compared to the Finalizer, it’s small, and most of the command panels seem outdated.

Dameron makes his way over to a woman who’s going over attack plans. She’s short, with blonde hair fashioned into duty braids similar to those worn by Organa. He recognises her from Order reconnaissance information. Lieutenant Connix, chief operations controller of the Resistance.

Her eyes widen when she notices Hux. It’s clear she’s been crying recently.

“Is that--” Lieutenant Connix says, keeping her voice low.

“Yep,” Dameron replies. “He defected, helped us escape from the Steadfast.”

“So you brought him back here?” Connix presses. “He should be in a shuttle, heading straight to the High Courts of the Republic.”

“I’ve got it worked out.” Dameron insists.

Connix sighs.

“I really hope you do, Poe,” Connix says, her voice tired and tense. She turns towards Hux, and hisses. “Watch yourself, Starkiller.”

***

Hux sits on the edge of the airfield, watching as the Resistance base turns itself into one huge victory party, celebrating the fall of the First and Final Order.

He’s just trying to keep out of it. The decision to spare him has not been a popular one, after the Hosnian System and what not. And while he isn’t the type to dwell on his failures, there’s also no denying that he’s feeling a sense of melancholy. The First Order had lost, its survivors now scattered across star systems. Everything he had once worked for is gone.

But Kylo Ren is dead, so everything was all worth it.

It had to be.

If Hux was being honest though, he hadn’t always hated the force user. 

_Hux stands in the landing bay of the Finalizer, watching as the exit ramp of the newly arrived shuttle descends._

_He’s been waiting for this moment since Supreme Leader Snoke first announced that he’d be sending his apprentice to the Finalizer. He’d be a liar if he said he was thrilled at the prospect of sharing his command of the Finalizer. He’s worked his whole life to get to this point, to finally have power that is his alone._

_But, patience is his virtue. He’s suffered worse for less, and he has some hope for this partnership. Snoke has spoken highly of his apprentice’s skills with the Force. In particular, he praised his raw strength and skill in battle. This, coupled with Hux’s own sharp intellect, would make them a formidable match to their enemies._

_Hux hopes, at the very least, that they can get along as colleagues, if not something more companionable._

_A figure steps out of the shuttle._

_So this is Kylo Ren. He’s dressed in heavy black robes with a hood, and a mask. He and Hux are of a similar height, although Ren is broader, and better built for combat. Hanging from his belt is a lightsaber. Altogether, it cuts an imposing, almost intimidating figure._

_Instantly, his mind begins to run with questions, since Snoke had offered very little information about his apprentice. Where had he come from? What was beneath the mask? How old was he? Is he even human?_

_Ren saunters down the ramp, stopping a few steps in front of Hux._

_“Lord Kylo Ren,” Hux says, stepping forward. “Welcome to the Finalizer. I’m General Hux, commander of this ship.”_

_Kylo Ren stares at him for a moment, or maybe he doesn’t. It’s hard to be sure, with the mask._

_“So this is my ship,” Ren says, his voice distorted by a vocoder. Hux bristles at his words._

_“Our ship,” Hux corrects, trying to keep his tone even. No matter what happens, the Finalizer will always be his ship. “The Finalizer represents the most advanced battlecruiser design to date. She is the pride of the First Order fleet.”_

_Ren turns towards him. Suddenly, there’s a pressure against his mind,_ _like a building migraine._ _Just like when Snoke goes probing through his memories. Ren must be doing the same. Indignation and fury courses through him. He might have to suffer this sort of treatment from Snoke, but he will not tolerate it from his apprentice._

_“I would appreciate it if you refrained from rifling through my mind, Lord Ren,” Hux hisses, resisting the urge to flinch as Ren presses more. He should have known force users were all the same._

_A few moments later, the pressure eases from his mind._

_“I’ve seen all I needed to see, General.” Ren states. Even through the mask and vocoder, Hux can tell Ren’s mood has changed for the worse. Across the hangar, the windows of several tie fighters shatter._

Their relationship, unsurprisingly, had only quickly deteriorated from there.

Ren had despised him from virtually the moment he stepped foot on the Finalizer. It was a sentiment that Hux quickly returned. While there was no doubting Ren’s pure power, there was also no doubting that he was capricious, prone to fits of extreme rage, difficult to work with at the best of times, frequently impatient, and far more likely to trust in mystical visions than logic or fact.

Still though, there’s a part of him that does wonder what could have been. Only days after Snoke’s demise, Hux had cornered Ren, offering to put aside whatever differences they had, to work together for the good of the order.

The crushing pressure around his throat had been all the answer he’d needed.

Now, none of that matters. It was all over, all potential gone. Ren is dead, killed on Exegol with the majority of the Final Order, along with everything Hux had given his life thus far for. It made no small amount of anger course through him.

Hux pulls the hood of his jacket down lower. He would retreat to his quarters, if he could. There, at least, he could grieve in peace. But he hadn’t been assigned anywhere yet, so he’s stuck outside, nursing a glass of some kind of gods-awful whiskey that someone had offered him.

His attention is caught by a spacecraft, landing in the bay. Dameron and FN-2187 sprint towards it.

Must be the scavenger girl, then.

Sure enough, as the landing hatch opens, the girl rushes out, quickly embracing both the pilot and the stormtrooper. Trailing out behind her, is--

No.

It couldn’t be.

The powers that be must have cursed him, because standing next to the scavenger girl is Kylo Ren.

Hux is immediately filled with rage.

He threw in everything he had, betrayed the Order he had given his life to help build, to finally be free of Ren. And yet, there he stands, across the airfield from him, very much alive.

Hux throws his cup to the side and storms towards him.

FN-2187 is the first to notice.

“Oh, here we go.” The former stormtrooper says. Hux just pushes past him, straight up to Ren.

“You!” Hux says, loud enough that it could probably be heard across the airfield.

Ren turns at the sound of his voice. He looks different without all the robes and mask, somehow less intimidating, but he’s still unmistakably Ren.

At first, Ren’s stunned. Then he’s furious. “What are you doing here?!”

“What am I doing here? What are _you_ doing here?!” Hux screeches back. On any other day, he’d loathe himself for losing his composure like this, but it has been a long day and Kylo Ren is _alive_. “You’re supposed to be dead!”

“I asked you first!”

“Oh, real mature, Ren!”

Before Kylo can respond, they’re both pushed back as Dameron steps between them.

“Alright, you're both pretty. Now, let's all just calm down a little, okay?”

Ren shoves Dameron back, and takes another step forward into Hux’s space. They’re almost toe to toe now. He knows he’s behaving just like Ren right now, but he cannot bring himself to care.

“I was the spy!” Hux hisses, as he feels the pressure of the force begin to weave its way around his throat. He still has his monomolecular blade, its familiar weight against his arm. It’s just a matter of getting close enough to use it. “I was the spy for the Resistance!”

The pressure around Hux’s throat grows tighter, and it’s suddenly difficult to move. He should have struck when he had the chance, should have shot him the second he saw Snoke’s corpse.

Ren, meanwhile, is ready to strike him down, right there in the middle of the Resistance base. But before Ren can use the Force to choke him or snap his neck, the girl intervenes. She steps forward and puts her hand to Ren’s chest.

“Ben.” She says, and Ren suddenly deflates. The pressure around Hux’s throat disappears, and the force-user takes a step back, leaning into the girl’s touch.

And Hux gets it now. He understands why Ren is so fixated on the girl. Really, he should have guessed sooner that it was less about wanting to train her, and more about just wanting her, in the baser sense.

With the looks that FN-2187 and Dameron are throwing her way, they’ve just realised it too.

“Come on,” the girl says, turning to leave.

“I fucking hate him.” Hux says, as the girl leads Ren away. If Hux feels a sudden, irrational stab of something like jealousy, he puts it down to the incredibly long day he’s had.

“That’s a relatable feeling.” Dameron agrees.

Hux rounds on Dameron.

“Did you know?” He asks, demanding an answer. How long had the Resistance known that Ren had survived? Were they always planning on bringing him in?

“Not until about a minute ago,” Dameron replies. He doesn’t seem particularly happy about the revelation either. He turns back to Hux. “Come on. Let’s find you a room.”

Hux is so full of rage and fury he can’t even bring himself to say anything more, he just follows after Dameron.


	2. Chapter 2

***

It’s not long before the Resistance starts wanting more information.

Or needing it, more specifically.

The surviving Final Order units and offshoots had risen, and quicker than even Hux had anticipated. While the dynamic has shifted, with the Final Order on the run from the Resistance, they were still regrouping faster than the Resistance would have liked.

So, he’s not at all surprised when he’s summoned to the war room early one morning. Dameron and FN-2187 are there, staring at holos of maps and plans.

“You wished to see me?” Hux says, pulling their attention away from whatever they were looking at. They turn the holos off when they see him. Obviously, they still don’t trust him completely. It’s a smart move on their part.

“We need information about the Final Order.” FN-2187 says, straight to the point.

Hux nods. He’d been expecting this. “About anything in particular, FN—"

“My name is Finn,” FN – _Finn_ – cuts in, crossing his arms. “And I would appreciate it if you used it.”

“Of course, General.” Hux corrects. “Did you need information about anything in particular?”

“Just tell us everything you know.” Dameron says.

He provides what information he can. Command structures, override codes, outpost locations, anything that could help the Resistance take on the Order. It’s all information that would be potentially very useful, if it wasn’t going to be outdated before the Resistance would even have the chance to use it.

It’s a careful balance. He’s a dead man if they suspect for even a moment that he’s lying to them. But he also doesn’t want to hand over information that will cripple the Order beyond recovery. After all, he’s still planning to return someday. He just needs to wait for the cards to fall where they may.

“What am I to do here?” Hux asks, after he’s told them everything. He’s been getting restless, and needs something to do. There was never a spare moment on the Finalizer, and with nothing to do at the Resistance base, he’s starting to lose his mind to boredom.

“There is one thing,” Finn says. “Poe mentioned you were a good mechanic.”

“I’m passable.” Hux admits. He doesn’t like where this conversation is going.

“That’s good,” Finn replies, smirking. “Because we’re really short on mechanics at the moment. Everyone has to pull their weight here, Recruit.”

The word _recruit_ stops him in his tracks. He knew when he defected that he wouldn’t be keeping the title of general, but he had expected something. Captain maybe, or hell, even Lieutenant. But _recruit_?

“Everything alright, recruit?” Finn asks, with false concern. This is absolutely an insult. He has one of the sharpest tactical minds in the galaxy, and proven command skills. Both Dameron and Finn know all of that.

This is clearly some sort of test.

“Of course, sir.” Hux says, clenching his fists behind his back. Unlike Ren, he can be patient when he needs to be. He tries to conceal his displeasure as he follows them to the hangar. They eventually stop in front of an X-Wing, where a woman is waiting. She’s short, with black hair, and dressed in a standard-issue mechanics uniform with a brown satchel bag to her side.

“Meet Lieutenant Rose Tico, head of the engineering corps,” Dameron introduces, throwing an arm over her shoulder. “She’ll be your supervisor for the foreseeable future.”

Hux realises with a start that he recognises the woman. She’s the Resistance fighter who had broken into the Supremacy, with Finn and the thief. Their last interaction had been less than amicable, to say the least. He’d had to keep bacta patches on his hand for a week.

“Lieutenant,” Hux says, formally.

Tico nods tersely in response. Her face is pinched, mouth twisted into a grimace, and her arms are crossed. It’s clear that Lieutenant Tico is about as happy with this arrangement as he is. And she’s his _supervisor_.

“You still okay with this, Rose?” Dameron asks, all concerned, like she’s not the one with all the power in this little scenario of theirs.

“I’ll be fine.” Tico replies, as she reaches into her bag and pulls out an electro-shock prod. “I can deal with him.”

Okay, he sees how this is going to go. He should have known even the Resistance isn’t above such tactics.

“Thanks again, Rose.” Finn says, as he hugs her. Tico blushes at the contact.

 _Interesting_ , Hux thinks.

The two Generals depart, leaving just him and Tico. As soon as they’re out of earshot, she rounds on him.

“I want you to know that I think you’re a vile, evil, despicable excuse for a person,” Tico hisses, her tone clipped and righteous. All the while, she brandishes the electro-shock prod at him. It’s not dissimilar to the ones used on disobedient students back at the academy. “And that I’m only doing this because Finn asked me to, you absolute _monster_.”

All in all, it’s certainly not the worst thing he’s ever been called, but the honesty of it all is a little jarring. A long time has passed since anyone’s dared saying something like that to his face. It’s irritating. What does he care what she thinks of him, what any of them think of him?

“I despise this just as much as you do.” Hux snaps back.

“I doubt that.” Tico argues. She holds his stare for a few moments longer, before sighing. “Anyway. Follow me, we’ll get you geared up.”

***

“Okay, good news first,” Dameron says, addressing the assembled crowd.

The battle of Exegol had been a month earlier to the day. Every member of the Resistance on Ajan Kloss is present, gathered in the war room, keen for news on just where the Resistance stands.

Hux keeps to the edge of the room. Those near him eye him warily, and he ignores them. It’s nothing he’s not used to. He sees the way the Resistance fighters look at him, how conversations die when he walks past. But what does he care? After all, he is the former General of the most powerful and elite military force that the galaxy has ever seen. Entire planets have been obliterated by his weapon, on his command. He will not be cowed by a ragtag collection of rebels and malcontents.

All of that being said though, he cannot deny that he misses the First Order. There’s a reason he keeps to himself, only leaving his room in the dead of night when the base is quiet. He misses having his own space, misses having a proper uniform, misses working in a place that had a sense of order and structure to it. The Resistance base is just consistently chaotic. Everyone is always scrambling around, all of the tech is outdated and frequently operating sub-optimally, and it’s too noisy to sleep properly.

No wonder Ren is the way he is, if he grew up in a place like this. Hux has always been more stable than the force user, but even he’s beginning to strain under the intensity of everything. He’d even taken up smoking again, a habit he’d kicked back when he’d made captain.

Hux takes a breath.

It’s just a matter of biding his time, he tells himself. At some point, he’ll have the chance to go back to the Order, and, by the stars, he _will_ take it.

“By our last count, the Resistance has more than quadrupled its ranks,” Dameron continues. A definite bolster in numbers, compared to what the Resistance had after Crait. But, it’s still less than they were probably hoping for. After all, the Republic is still weak after the loss of the Hosnian System. Probably will be, for a long time. “And almost every Final Order occupied planet is in uprising against them.”

More than a few people glance across at Hux. He keeps standing tall and straight.

“We are the spark that will light the fire that will restore the Republic and burn what’s left of the Final Order to the ground,” Dameron concludes. “That is our mission, and we will continue as we always have.”

Cheers rise up, deafeningly loud in the comparably small room. Hux has to admit that as speeches go, it’s not bad. It will certainly get the troops inspired and raise morale.

“And, the not-so-good news,” Finn says, once the roar of the crowd dies down. “Not every uprising has been successful, and the Final Order still hold several planets.”

A holo pops up in the centre of the room, displaying said planets. If the intel is correct, then the Final Order still holds many of the core worlds, including Zhadalene, Korrus, and Vardos.

They could still be fighting this war for a while yet.

“The Final Order has a new leader too,” Finn continues. “Ap’lek Ren has taken over.”

The holo of the planet’s switches, showing a Knight of Ren cutting through a crowd of protesters. Hux turns to see Ren’s reaction. After all, he’d said he’d killed everyone one of them.

“Impossible,” Ren cuts in. Rage and shock contort his face. No wonder he’s always worn the mask, he’s so innately expressive that he cannot hide how he truly feels. “I killed him. I killed them all.”

“Evidently not,” Hux says, raising his voice. He knows how smug he sounds but can’t help himself. Few things give him as much joy these days as watching Ren fail. “Well done, Kylo Ren!”

Ren absolutely loses it. He clenches his fists, and the screens around the room crack as the lights flicker. Once again, he can feel the air grow thick with the power of the force. There’s a tense moment where he thinks that Ren might actually attack him. Hux braces for it.

Instead, Ren snarls and storms out, the crowd parting in a hurry to keep out of his way. The girl quickly trails after.

Hux can’t help but smile. Even after returning to the Light, Ren is just as unstable as ever. He might not even have to plan Ren’s demise. The force user might just rush straight into it himself.

He turns back to the holo screens. Dameron and Finn are staring at him, and neither of them look impressed. In fact, no one in the room seems particularly thrilled by it. Can’t they see what an uncontrollable disaster Ren is?

“Do you have anything of value to add, _recruit_?” Finn asks, sharply.

The words cut right to the bone.

And that’s when it hits him, all at once. Never again would he have the power he’d commanded on the Finalizer. When the Final Order fleet had gone down on Exegol, it had taken with it any and all authority, influence, and respect he’d once had.

It’s a kick to the gut, but he’ll be damned if he lets them see that.

“No sir.” Hux says. He masks his face to hide all emotion, just like he was taught in the academy.

***

A few days later, Hux finds a cat.

He had been eating his dinner outside when it had crept out of the jungle foliage and into view. They’re the absolute opposite of Millicent. This tom cat is an ugly thing, pitch black as deep space, with patches of fur and half of its left ear missing. It’s a scrawny creature, all sharp edges and bones.

Must have been a stray then. Which is strange, since cats aren’t native to Ajan Kloss. Perhaps it’s the kitten of a house cat gone wild.

“You don’t belong here, do you?” Hux says, as he tries to coax it over. Although he would never say it out loud, he’s missed Millicent, ever since he’d lost her with the fall of Starkiller.

The cat just hisses at him, its ears flat and hackles raised.

He hisses back, but still throws it a piece of meat from his plate. He’s not that hungry anyway.

Its ears stay flat, but it creeps forward and eats the offered food.

*******

Hux is with the Resistance for another month before he sees Ren again.

It’s surprising, given how small the Resistance base is compared to Starkiller or the Finalizer. Hux takes it to mean that either Ren is avoiding him, or Dameron, Finn, and the girl have intentionally been keeping them separated.

He’s seen traces of the force-user around though. Broken windows and control panels, and gouges in walls that could only have been done by a lightsaber. Clearly, his struggle to control himself is not limited to the dark side.

Frankly, he’s amazed that they let the force user walk around unsupervised.

Yet there he is, stumbling his way into the rec room in the middle of the night. Hux is out because he couldn’t sleep and couldn’t stand to be in his room any longer. He’d just wanted to find some peace and quiet, and obviously the universe wouldn’t even give him that.

Ren looks different to when Hux had seen him last. He’s dressed in light grey robes, his usually messy dark hair tied back. He looks younger like this, younger than the five years between them. He’s favouring his right leg, and his arm is pulled tight to his left side. His breathing is shallower than it should be, as well.

There had been a strike on a Final Order outpost earlier that day. Ren must have fought.

As soon as he sees him, Ren straightens up, and his arm drops from his side. Ren never did like to look weak, especially in front of him.

“Hux,” Ren says, surprised.

Hux had thought he would start another fight the next time he saw him, but he finds that he’s too tired for that. The rage that had fuelled their earlier encounters has been leached out of him by this point, replaced with bone-deep weariness.

“Ren,” Hux says, by way of greeting. “You look like shit.”

“Ben,” Ren corrects, ignoring the second part of the comment. “They call me Ben Solo.”

“Whatever you say, Ren.” Hux replies, purely vindictively. The rage might be gone, but the spite is still there, sharp beneath the surface.

Ren must really be exhausted, because he doesn’t even try to correct him. He just rolls his eyes, and all but collapses into a chair across from Hux.

They sit in silence for a few minutes. Eventually, Hux’s curious nature gets the best of him.

“So, you and the scavenger.”

“Rey and I are a dyad in the Force,” Ren explains, in that usual, dramatic way of his. “It binds us mind and soul.”

 _And probably body too_ , he thinks, but doesn’t say. There was only so far he could push Ren before he would push back, and as entertaining as it is, he has no desire to get thrown across the room today.

“Is that why you joined the Resistance?” Hux asks, instead.

“Partially. The pull to the light was too strong to ignore,” Ren admits. After a moment, he continues. “What are you doing here, Hux? You don’t belong here.”

“I could say the same of you.”

“No, you couldn’t,” Ren counters. “I was always pulled to the Light. You were the most dedicated man in the First Order. What made you turn traitor?”

The word traitor makes his blood boil. How dare Ren, of all people, call him that.

“Honestly?” Hux replies, not even trying to hide how bitter he sounded. “I just wanted to see you lose.”

The force-user actually has the audacity to smile at that.

“Then I’m sure you’re pleased with how this has all turned out.” Ren says, smirking.

“I hate you,” Hux seethes, as he stands and leaves the room. “I should have shot you when I had the chance!”

“The feeling’s mutual, _General_.” Ren calls out after him.

*******

“So, somebody told me you’re actually a pretty good pilot.”

The voice startles him from the starfighter engine he’s working on. He hadn’t been expecting Dameron, let alone for him to turn up _knowing things_ about him. He runs through his head who, if anyone, on this base would know he’s a pilot. Ren might have known, but there was no way that he’d have said he was good at it.

“I haven’t flown since I was in the Imperial Academy.” Hux says, because it’s true. By the time he’d left the academy, he was already on track to becoming a captain. Piloting spacecraft would have been beneath him, even if he had enjoyed it.

“That’s a shame,” Dameron replies, leaning against the side of the starfighter. “I also found out that you’re a skilled engineer, reasonably good in close combat, and, I’m quoting here, a ‘brilliant tactician’.”

“How did you find out?” Hux asks, turning to Dameron and crossing his arms. It made him uncomfortable, people knowing things about him.

“A few years ago, we managed to crack into some First Order servers,” Dameron explains. “We didn’t get much info, but we did find a whole bunch of personal officer records.”

That surprises Hux, just a bit. Not that the Resistance would attempt to crack into their servers, but the fact that the Order never even realised there had been a breach. How much else had the Resistance succeeded in taking over the years?

“You read my file?”

“I was curious,” Dameron admits. “I wanted to know what makes you tick. How else did you think I knew about your mother? And I have to say, all that stuff about your dad makes a lot of things make sense--”

“Do not mention my parents!” Hux snaps. He’s not about to talk about this to anyone, least of all to a General of the Resistance.

Dameron puts his hands up in mock surrender.

“Was there anything else you wanted to speak about, General?” Hux grinds out. 

Dameron regards him for a moment, before speaking again.

“Look, Armitage--”

“Don’t ever call by that name.”

“--You can either sit around all day, moping--”

“I do not mope--” Hux argues. Moping is something that Ren does.

“Really? What else do you call hiding in your room all day?” Dameron counters. “Anyway, you can either keep being pathetic--”

“I am not pathetic!”

“Then prove it,” Dameron challenges, taking a step forward. “I thought that maybe you’d only become General because your father got you the position, but we both know that’s not the case. You’re just holding back. At least Kylo is actually being useful.”

Hux wonders if this is another test. It’s not the first time he’s been talked down to by his superiors, and it’s unlikely to be the last, he’s sure. How does Dameron expect him to react? How does Dameron _want_ him to react?

He clenches his fists. He’s so full of fury right now, he’s half-tempted to start a fight. But that’s probably exactly what Dameron is looking for, so he reigns in his emotions and bites his tongue.

A few tense moments pass, before Dameron speaks again.

“Give me one good reason why we shouldn’t just hand you over to the New Republic. Or just shoot you ourselves for your war crimes.”

Hux’s blood turns cold. Dameron must be in a worse mood than he first thought. He gives the only answer he knows is true.

“Because I’m useful to the Resistance.”

“Then be useful!” Dameron exclaims. “You’ll never be able to undo what you did, but if you actually apply yourself, then you might still be able to do some good.”

Hux doesn’t know what to say to that, so he stays silent.

“Anyway, think about it,” Dameron says, as he walks away.

***

Although he is reluctant to admit it, Dameron’s words strike a chord.

Clearly, his current path isn’t sustainable. He’s been stuck in a nebulous state, trapped between the past and present. He isn’t in a position to go back to the Final Order, and he couldn’t bring himself to move completely forward either.

But indecision is the death of progress. And now, he knows.

He cannot go back to the Order, at least as it currently stands. He’s been marked as a traitor, and he will not grovel for leniency. More to the point, he will not return just to be subservient to another unbalanced force user. 

No, whether he likes it or not, he’s stuck with the Resistance for the foreseeable future.

Dameron also had a point about the moping, he concedes. He needs to snap himself out of it. That kind of behaviour, after all, is not becoming of a man such as himself. He had been the youngest General the First Order had ever had, and that was never going to be the end of it, either. He’d always had dreams and ambitions of someday becoming Supreme Commander, or Grand Vizier, or even the Emperor.

The truth is, he had always been destined for greatness. His mistake was thinking that that had changed, simply because he had left the First Order. If he could not be great for the Final Order, then he would be great for the Resistance. He is, after all, just one man. He could not take on the Order by himself.

Yes, his path is clearer now. He would use his honed skills and talents to the benefit of the Resistance, to counter what’s left of the Final Order. Once his enemies had been decimated, and the right opportunity came along, he would leave. Then, he would pick up the fractured pieces and set the Order back on the path it was always meant to follow.

In the meantime, though, he’ll be the best damned tactician the Resistance has ever had.

That’ll show Ren.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Hux, ever the chessmaster, you.
> 
> First of all, huge thanks to everyone who commented, kudos, and subscribed after the first chapter (they give me life). It got way more attention than I was expecting! 
> 
> Secondly, with this fic, I’m really trying to puzzle out Hux’s motivations while keeping him (and others) in character. As such, I’m happy to discuss the fic further in the comments if you have any questions about the character choices I’ve made.
> 
> Anyway, thanks again, and see you soon for the next chapter!
> 
> If you wanna chat more kylux, star wars, or fandom in general, come find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/anoptimistprime) or [Tumblr](https://an-optimist-prime.tumblr.com/)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of updates (I explain why at the end). Enjoy an extra long chapter for the wait ❤️

***

The next day, Hux uses his spare time to start drafting some schematics.

The tech the Resistance has is far too often outdated. Most of the aircraft were in frankly shocking condition as well. The one he had been working on before had internals held together with electrical tape. Tape! In a starfighter! It’s a miracle the thing didn’t just fall out of the sky.

Hux had always assumed that the Resistance had direct Republican backing, but no, they were really on their own. It says something, about Resistance ingenuity, that they have managed to fight off the First Order persistently for so long.

But, if they really wanted the edge against the Final Order, then they would need better tech. He’d personally designed both Starkiller and the Finalizer. It wouldn’t take him long to design something that would give them an advantage.

He starts working through some equations on his datapad as Valerius weaves between his legs, purring. The cat had grown healthier once he’d started feeding him, his sleek black fur beginning to grow back where it had been missing before. Nobody had come forward to claim the animal as theirs, so he had taken to caring for him and given the cat a suitably noble name. The cat is still as cantankerous and short-tempered as before, just as likely to hiss and claw at him as he is to show affection.

He gently pets the cat before turning back to the datapad. The designs he’s working on will allow them to not only track spacecraft through lightspeed but will scramble any attempts to be lightspeed tracked themselves.

It’s based on his earlier designs. He’d have to redo all of the calculations again, but that wouldn’t take him long. He’d fix its mistakes too, so that it could not be so easily undone. It’s something the Resistance needs, if they want an edge over the Final Order.

So, of course, it would be his bargaining chip into the intelligence division.

***

If he had thought that Ren’s little outbursts had been aggravating enough when he was a General, they’re infinitely more so when he’s the one who actually has to clean up the mess.

Through some cosmic idea of a joke (or, more likely, through the intentional intervention of Dameron or Finn) Hux had been assigned to fix whatever machinery was broken by Ren, after their fight at the last meeting. It’s an infuriating, condescending, and frankly insulting task, but, like everything else they make him do, he just bites his tongue and gets on with it. He consoles himself with the vision that someday soon he’ll be a Commander again, and won’t ever have to fix another stars-damned panel or monitor.

“Again?” Tico says, when they receive the notification, sounding as exasperated as Hux feels. This was the third time in the same week, and because she’s his supervisor, she usually has to come along as well. While there’s no doubt that Tico despises him, she does remain more or less professional while they’re on duty. He can respect her for that, at least.

Hux just rolls his eyes, and they leave to fix whatever poor piece of equipment was the victim of Ren’s ire today.

As soon as they reach the control centre, he can tell exactly what they’ll be trying to fix. It’s a radar report console, and Ren has really done a number on it. It’s still smoking, with the edges of the cuts from the saber still glowing faintly red. Hux doubts they’re going to be able to get it operational again.

“What happened this time?” Tico asks.

“Poe and Ben had another disagreement,” Lieutenant Connix explains, gesturing to the panel. “He wrecked it before Rey could calm him down.”

Tico sighs.

“We might as well get started,” she says, as they pull the front casing off and try to assess the internal damage.

“This is the third time this week,” Tico says, after they’ve spent a few minutes tinkering with the internal wiring. Hux is pretty sure the whole unit’s a write off. “Was he always this bad?”

“Worse actually,” Hux replies, although it’s a close call. The core processor is burned through. They’re definitely going to have to find a replacement. “It happened so often on the Finalizer that it had its own line in expense reports.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It was listed under R.T.C – Ren’s Tantrum Collateral.”

Tico actually laughs at that, and Connix snickers as well.

He’s glad that they find it amusing, because he only finds it frustrating. On the Finalizer, they could literally just throw away the damaged machinery and install new units. Here, they don’t have that option. They simply don’t have the resources for him to keep breaking things like this.

It makes him resent Ren in a surprising new way.

Hux cuts the wires attached to the destroyed core processing unit and pulls the whole thing out. It’s heavier than he was expecting. But he’s never been one to pass up an opportunity to agitate Ren.

“Why are you taking that?” Tico asks.

“I’m going to have a talk with Ren.”

***

He finds Ren, sitting in the dining hall with the scavenger girl.

They’re staring at each other intently, her hand on top of his. The pair are so engrossed in whatever they’re doing that they don’t notice him, even as he’s standing next to them. Without warning, he drops the processing unit onto the table. It makes a satisfying crash that echoes through the hall and startles both force users out of their trance.

“Was that necessary?” The girl asks.

“What the fuck?!” Ren says, at the exact same time.

“This isn’t the First Order, Ren,” Hux seethes. His patience has worn too thin for niceties. “We do not have the resources to keep fixing the collateral damage from your little temper tantrums. Control yourself.”

The girl leans back in her seat and crosses her arms. “He’s right, you know.”

“Like you care about Resistance resources,” Ren challenges as he stands up, no doubt trying to intimidate him.

“Well, someone has to, and it clearly isn’t you,” Hux says, standing his ground and not caving to Ren’s little threat. “Get it together, Ren.”

With that, he just turns around and walks out. He will not give Ren the satisfaction of getting the last word.

***

“I want to be moved to intelligence,” Hux says, to the generals. “I’m being wasted in mechanics, the work is beneath me.”

It is, after all, true. He was a general in the First Order. He’s far better at finding funds, securing resources, and coordinating attacks than he is at fixing fighters and control panels.

Both Dameron and Finn look suspicious at the request, which is probably fair.

“You’re gonna have to give us something.” Finn says, after a moment.

Hux had anticipated that though, and he slides the datapad with the schematics over the table to them.

“What are these?” Dameron asks, picking up the tablet. Finn reads from over the pilot’s shoulder.

“Plans,” Finn answers, taking the plans from Dameron for a closer inspection. “For a hyperspeed tracker.”

“It will scramble any attempts at being tracked through hyperspeed as well.” Hux adds.

“You got anything else?” Dameron asks, turning back to Hux.

“Yes,” Hux explains. “Information. There’s a base on one of the moons of Kataar. The First Order used it to funnel in resources from the outer rim. They might still be using it.”

“What did you move through it?”

“Everything. Supplies, munitions, even starfighters. If this base is still operational, and we take it, we gain resources, and they lose part of their supply chain.”

“Two birds, one stone.”

“Exactly.”

The two generals look to each other.

“We’ll think about it.” Finn says.

***

The attack on Kataar happens three days later and goes off without a hitch. In the process, the Resistance gains new weaponry, munitions, and even a squadron's worth of starfighters.

The next morning, Dameron finds him as he makes his way to the hangar.

“Alright, Hux,” Dameron says. “You held up your end, we’ll hold up ours. We’re moving you to intelligence.”

“Finally,” Hux mutters, as he follows Dameron to the intelligence offices. They’re nothing compared to the facilities the Order has, just a handful of desks and terminals. It’s tidier than most other spaces around the base, though.

“Hux, this is Captain Beaumont Kin, head of Resistance Intelligence.” Dameron introduces.

Captain Kin nods, sizing him up.

“We’ve got a busy week ahead of us,” Kin states, rather seriously. “We need to write up the mission report for Kataar, liaise with several of our on-planet agents, collect on the 10 million credit bounty on your head, fix the broken caf machine--”

“Excuse me,” Hux cuts in, his panic beginning to rise. “What was that about a bounty?”

“Don’t stress, he’s joking,” Dameron explains. “He does that a lot. But kriff, 10 million credits?”

“You should have seen your face,” Kin says, his voice remaining deadpan.

Right, well. This was going to be interesting, to say the least. 

***

The Final Order comes for them a week after that.

Hux knew it was only a matter of time before they would hit back, but even he is surprised by just how quickly the reprisal comes. They get a tip off that the attack is coming, but even then, they still have only minutes to evacuate the whole base.

It’s absolute chaos. Everyone is running, trying to grab whatever they can and load it into the escape shuttles. The whole situation brings back undesirable memories of Starkiller, but he pushes them aside. There’s no time to dwell on them now.

Hux, meanwhile, is in his room, grabbing what little he has and shoving it into a bag. Most of the escape shuttles have left already, but he had to move the intelligence equipment first.

Valerius, meanwhile, sits on his bed, watching him with mild curiosity. He’s grateful that the cat had been in his room, and not wandering about. He hadn’t been able to save Millicent on Starkiller, and he’d been concerned that he wouldn’t be able to save Valerius, either.

Hux swings the bag over his shoulder, before picking up the cat.

Valerius hisses.

“There’s no need to be like that,” Hux says, before he starts briskly walking to the escape shuttles.

Just as he reaches the shuttle bay, a star destroyer pulls out of hyperspeed, into the skies above. Hux promptly climbs into the first shuttle he sees, the landing hatch closing behind him.

“Finally!” Someone says. Hux turns around. It’s Lieutenant Connix, typing something into a datapad. Finn is beside her. “What took you so long?”

“I had to go back for Valerius.” Hux states, as the escape shuttle takes off. He looks around. Aside from Connix and Finn, he doesn’t recognise anyone.

“Who’s Valerius?” Finn asks.

Hux gestures to the cat in his arms, who appears to have calmed down a bit.

“A cat,” Finn says, his tone surprised and almost disbelieving. Connix seems taken back as well. “You went back for a cat?”

“Well, I wasn’t about to leave him behind!” Hux retorts. Outside of the viewport, he can see their base going up in flames. He suppresses a shudder. They really were cutting it fine. The shuttle jumps to lightspeed a moment later.

“A cat,” Finn says, shaking his head, before moving towards the pilot controls.

Hux ignores him. Valerius begins to squirm, so he puts him down on the floor, before finding a seat for himself. Some of the other rebels give him strange looks, but he ignores them as well.

That was a close call for the Resistance, and by extension, for him. If the Order could track them once, they could do it again. How did they even find them? They must have used the lightspeed tracker tech he’d designed.

If the Resistance wants the edge over the Order, or even to even just survive, they’ll need new tech. Something that will block lightspeed travel, perhaps, or maybe scramble long distance comms. He pulls his datapad out from his bag, and begins drafting.

After a while, he looks up from the screen. Valerius has wandered over to Finn, brushing up against his legs.

“You are kinda cute.” Finn says quietly to Valerius, crouching down to scratch him behind the ears.

Valerius begins to purr.

_Traitor_ , Hux thinks.

***

Their new base is smaller than their last base on Ajan Kloss, and in the middle of a desert. Hux hopes that it’s temporary. The climate is hot and dry, and he can feel his skin starting to burn as he stands in the sunlight.

It’s also so backwater it makes Jakku look like a metropolis.

He’s barely had time to settle into his new room (which he has to share with others due to the lack of space, stars damn it) before he’s called into a meeting by Captain Kin.

It’s in the new war room, which is still in the process of being put together, a dozen or so exhausted technicians still rushing around. This meeting is much smaller than the last briefing he’d attended. Dameron, Finn, Kin, Connix, Tico, and the scavenger girl. Ren is there as well, off to the side, leaning against the wall across from him. Hux had hoped the force user had been left behind on Ajan Kloss, but alas, no such luck.

“You requested my presence?” Hux says, standing beside Kin. As per usual, the Captain’s face betrays nothing, but suddenly, all the technicians leave, closing the doors behind them.

Immediately, Hux knows that something is wrong.

“Okay,” Finn says, addressing the group. “We need to work out how the Final Order found our location.”

At that moment, everyone in the room turns towards Hux.

They think that he tipped off the Order.

“It wasn’t me,” Hux states, trying not to sound too defensive. “I’ve had no contact with the Final Order since I left.”

“Look, Hux, it’s not that we don’t trust you,” Dameron starts.

“But we don’t trust you.” Finn finishes.

_You’d be fools if you did_ , he thinks. Even he has to admit how bad this looks. If the situations were reversed, he would have already sent the accused to a torture chamber.

“If I did it, then why am I still here?” Hux argues, keeping his tone even, and trying not to betray how agitated he is. “Why would I bother being a spy for a year, defect, and hand over critical information, just to switch back two months later?”

“You could be a triple agent.” Tico suggests, crossing her arms.

“A triple agent?” Hux responds, hoping the tone of his voice conveys just how stupid he finds that suggestion. “Really?”

“If it wasn’t you,” Finn cuts in from across the table. “Then how did they find us?”

Hux thinks for a moment. If he doesn’t convince them, he could end up in Republic hands, or worse.

“The Order had been tracking you down since the moment you escaped Crait in the Millennium Falcon,” Hux explains, trying to keep his tone even. “We were reasonably confident that the Resistance base was somewhere in the Cademimu sector, but we couldn’t work out exactly where.”

“So, how did they find us now?” Finn presses.

“They’ve obviously managed to track you from the attack on Kataar. Either they’ve locked on one of the starfighters with their hyperspeed tracking capabilities, or, more likely, one of the starfighters you recently requisitioned from the Order has a tracker on it you’ve missed.”

Tico suddenly looks less smug. Most people there do, actually. If he’s being honest, he’s not particularly thrilled himself. If he’s right (and he often is) and they have missed a tracker, then it’s only a matter of time before the Order finds them again.

“You’re the one who told us to attack Kataar,” Tico accuses.

“I merely told you where resources were available,” Hux sneers. “I assumed you had the capability to take said resources and return without being followed. My apologies if I overestimated your skill.”

Tico scowls at him, but doesn’t argue further.

Ren, meanwhile, is staring at him, rather intently, and smirking.

“What?” Hux demands.

“I could check that he’s telling the truth.” Ren says, to the others.

“Absolutely not.” Hux insists, detesting the thread of panic that runs through him.

Hux has seen what Ren does to prisoners, and what little is left of them afterwards. He has no desire to have it happen to him. And, more to the point, Ren might see that he’s still planning on reforming the Order, after everything.

“Yeah, that’s not gonna happen,” Dameron states, crossing his arms. Of course. Dameron has firsthand experience with Ren’s interrogation techniques.

“You believe him?” the scavenger girl says, incredulously.

“I didn’t say that,” Dameron says. “But this is the Resistance. Everyone is innocent until proven otherwise, and we sure as hell don’t torture people.”

It’s weakness, and it’s why the Resistance will ultimately lose. But, as per usual, their mercy works to Hux’s benefit.

Captain Kin speaks up. “I ran a diagnostic on the communicators and routers, and all detected incoming and outgoing signals, for our last base.”

“Find anything?” Dameron asks.

“Nothing suspicious.”

“Let us know if something does turn up.”

“Of course, General.”

After a moment, Tico speaks up as well.

“I’ll get my crews to double check for trackers and beacons.”

“Thanks Rose.”

The feeling of dread in his gut begins to subside. He may actually get out of this without getting thrown in the brig or having his mind rifled through. Still, there’s the matter of how the Order actually managed to track them. If they found them once, they can find them again.

“Permission to speak, General.” Hux says, after a moment.

Dameron gives him a strange look. “Sure.”

“However they found us, It’s only a matter of time before they find the trail again,” Hux says. “We can’t stay here for long.”

“He’s right,” Finn agrees. “We need to lose them.”

Dameron thinks for a moment. “Kaydel, would you be able to scout out our next base?

“Already on it, General.” Connix replies, typing something into her datapad.

“Alright,” Dameron says, to the others. “Let everyone know that this base is temporary, and to be ready to move once we have a new location.”

Everyone voices their assent, and Hux lets out a breath he didn’t realise he was holding. He can hardly believe that he got away with it.

Except, he can. Because this is the Resistance, and they’re merciful to a fault.

“You can go now,” Captain Kin says, to him. Hux doesn’t need to be told twice. He turns, and makes for the door.

As he leaves, Tico follows him out.

“I know you’re hiding something!” Tico hisses at him.

Hux just ignores her. Let the woman have her suspicion. He’ll be long gone before she proves anything.

***

The planet may be hot, but the temperature is more bearable in the evenings. It doesn’t take Hux long to find a place of his own. He’s always needed his own space, the need becoming particularly dire now that he has to share barracks with others.

It’s out on an overhang, providing an excellent vantage point of the valley below, and the horizon as well. The planet has three moons, and all of them are visible in the sky at the moment.

It’s rather beautiful. Serene too.

And, of course, it’s ruined by Ren.

“Ren.” Hux says, in greeting. He doesn’t even need to turn around to know it’s him, he can tell by the sound of the footfalls.

“General.” Ren says, in response. He takes a seat, a few feet away from Hux. His hair is loose, and he’s in the grey robes again. Hux never thought he’d say it, but he actually misses the black.

“Do you want something, or are you just here to ruin my evening?” Hux asks.

“Just ruining your evening.” Ren says, smirking. He’s staring at the sky as well.

“Of course you are.” Hux says. Typical Ren.

“What do you know about Ap’lek Ren?” Hux asks, after a few minutes of silence. If Ren is going to persist, he might as well get something useful out of him.

“Why do you ask?” Ren replies, his voice guarded.

“If we’re going to beat him, we need a strategy,” Hux explains. “And that involves knowing your opponent. Their strengths, weaknesses, abilities and skills. Everything.”

Ren doesn’t answer straight away. Hux begins to think Ren will refuse to answer, out of spite, before the force user begins speaking.

“Ap’lek was always an outsider, even among us,” Ren begins. “He favoured deception over strength and had a habit of misdirecting what he would do next.” 

“I presume he prefers stealth attacks, then?” Hux asks. From the way Ren is describing Ap’lek, their enemy is going to be more difficult to defeat than he first anticipated. Never matter though. Hux does like a challenge every now and again.

“Usually,” Ren continues. “It doesn’t matter though. I can defeat him. He’s weaker in the force, compared to me and Rey.”

“Is he really weaker in the force?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, is he actually weak with the force, or does he just want you to think that?” Hux explains. “You said he’s a deceiver, after all.”

Ren is speechless, for a moment.

“I’ve never thought of it like that,” Ren admits. Hux rolls his eyes. Honestly, it’s a miracle that Ren has survived as long as he has.

“No, he has to be weak,” Ren continues, his voice growing more confident with each word. “He wouldn’t be able to hide that from me.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Ren doesn’t answer, and Hux begins calculating their next move.

***

Hux is reading through some old imperial reports when Lieutenant Tico strides into the Resistance intelligence office.

Since he’d been moved to intelligence, they’d had nothing to do with each other. Whatever her reason, she does not appear happy as she stops just in front of his desk, a datapad in her hands.

“Lieutenant Tico,” Hux says, barely looking up from the report in front of him. “To what do I owe your visit?”

“Your hyperspeed tracker plans.” Tico replies.

“What of them?” Hux asks, when she doesn’t elaborate further.

“Poe and Finn had me check over the blueprints you gave them. There are _errors_.” Tico accuses, waving the datapad in front of him.

Hux rips the datapad from her hands.

“I knew it, I knew you weren’t really on our side!” Tico continues, but he tunes her out as he scrolls through the coding script. Sure enough, there are indeed errors, ones he should have picked up in the first place.

“Damn it,” Hux mutters under his breath, as he begins making corrections. He might have been under a fair amount of stress and in a rush when he had made them, but that was no excuse. Mistakes were unacceptable. He can practically hear his father’s admonishment. _Stupid boy_.

“It was a mistake.” Tico says, quietly.

“Of course it was!” Hux snaps. The last thing he needs is some self-righteous rebel rubbing salt in the wound. “You think I would have given these to high command if I had known there were errors in the coding?”

Tico jumps, just a bit, at his vicious tone and animosity. Hux sighs. He’s not here to make friends, but it won’t do to lose his composure, either, particularly at someone who’s technically his superior. He turns back to the datapad and continues coding.

“You were right,” Tico says, after a few more minutes pass. Her tone is different, softer.

“You’ll have to be more specific, Lieutenant.”

“About how the Final Order found us,” Tico explains. “We did miss a tracker in one of the new starfighters.”

That comment gets his attention. He turns to her, cold dread already beginning to form in his gut. They’ve only been at the new base for a little over two days, but that is plenty of time for the Order to get a lock on their location.

“We’re out of range, but we destroyed it anyway,” Tico reassures him. “Poe says we’ll move again in a few days, just to be sure.”

He turns his attention back to the datapad, just a little bit pleased. There’s a certain satisfaction in being proven right. Ren probably had a tantrum when he found out.

“You were telling the truth.” Tico presses, sounding astonished.

Hux ignores the comment, focussing on his work. Beside him, Tico has gone quiet, watching him work.

Hux has to admit that her proofreading is thorough and detailed. Most of his errors are relatively minor, but it shows her skill that she’d managed to notice them. She’d added her own suggestions as well, some of which were actually quite ingenious. Furthermore, the fact that she had remained suspicious about him suggested that she’s one of the more astute people at the base.

He could use having a competent person around like that. If he’s to be with the Resistance for a while, he may as well make use of the resources he has available.

“Your proofreading is meticulous,” Hux says, turning back to Tico.

“Oh,” Tico says, more than a little surprised to have received such praise. “Thank you.”

“Lieutenant Tico, would you consider proofreading my designs in the future?” Hux asks, handing the datapad back to her.

“Yeah, sure,” Tico says, even more surprised than before. After a moment, she continues. “You’re really staying, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” he says. _For now_ , he thinks. 

***

Hux has always been adept at operating with a minimum amount of sleep. Primarily, because he’s always been too busy to waste precious time on something as mundane as sleep. But secondly, because he’s prone to nightmares. It’s a childish weakness he has never been able to break. So, he actively avoids it, keeping himself busy and awake long enough so that when he finally does crash, his rest is deep and undisturbed.

It works, some of the time.

What Ren is doing awake, he has no idea. He’d heard once, that force users need less sleep than the average person. Perhaps there’s truth to the rumour.

As it were, they were both out at the overhang, appreciating the quiet and cool of the night. They’ll be moving bases tomorrow. He might almost miss the scenery.

“Tell me the truth,” Hux asks, because it’s been on his mind for a while. “Did the girl really kill Snoke?”

“No,” Ren admits, without a hint of shame. “That was me. All me.”

“I knew it,” Hux says, revelling in the joy of being right. He’d known there was no way the girl had been strong enough to do it on her own. “Why?”

“He was the real enemy,” Ren elaborates. His fists are clenched, and Hux can almost feel the tightly coiled anger rolling off from Ren as he speaks of their former master. “All that time, he was holding me back. Keeping me chained. But I am my own master. I will not be controlled.”

“Control is not a word I associate with you, Ren.”

“I’m in control.” Ren insists.

“Multiple consoles and panels would beg to differ.” Hux retorts. It’s an easy jab. Even he has to admit that Ren has been more in control, more disciplined as of late. The girl must have a calming influence on him.

“Whatever.” Ren replies, his tone acerbic. They’re sliding back into their old dynamic. It’s almost comforting to have something so familiar in an unfamiliar place.

Neither of them speaks after that. In the silence, he can almost pretend that they’re back on the Finalizer. Just standing on the bridge, and looking out at the stars.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, I apologise for the lack of updates. I do try to keep to a regular posting schedule. Unfortunately, my father passed away very suddenly and unexpectedly at the beginning of the month. Between organising the funeral, liaising with the police, and just general grief, I did not have the time or energy to work on fic. I’m hoping there won’t be any more breaks, but healing takes time and I can’t promise anything. I really appreciate your patience during this time.
> 
> Secondly, I know absolutely nothing about mechanics, engineering, or coding, and I’m taking massive creative liberties with it. So please be nice and suspend your disbelief!
> 
> Thirdly, a huge thank you to everyone who has left kudos, comments, and subscribed. You guys give me life and keep me going. 
> 
> Lastly, I’m far more active on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/anoptimistprime) or [Tumblr](https://an-optimist-prime.tumblr.com/), so come find me if you wanna chat 🖤🧡


	4. Chapter 4

Just as Tico had said, they change bases a few days later.

Their newest base is on a planet named Natana, located in the Abrion sector of the outer rim. It’s a more temperate planet than their previous one, warm during the day but cold at night. A forest of tall pine trees surrounds the base, keeping them concealed from the ground and sky.

This base is much larger than the previous one, and he even gets his own room. It’s smaller than his quarters on the Finalizer or the Steadfast, but it’s still nice to have his own space again.

It’s been a long time since he’s lived planetside, and he finds himself almost growing used to it.

_This is only temporary_ , he reminds himself.

***

They’re only fifteen minutes into the mission briefing, and Hux is already done.

Ren has just finished outlining his plan for attack on an Order Outpost. As per usual, he’s completely disregarded Hux’s report, which suggests waiting a few weeks and striking when the base should be at its lowest staffing levels. Maximum effectiveness, minimal potential casualties. Pure efficiency, just like all of his plans.

Ren doesn’t want to wait, though. He’s formulated his own plan, which consists entirely of brute forcing their way in to get what they want, _tomorrow_. It’s not surprising. All Ren cares about at the moment is finding and killing Ap’lek. It’s like they’re back on the Finalizer, with his stubborn and ultimately futile search for Luke Skywalker.

Funny, how some things never change.

“Not bad, Ren,” Hux says, once Ren is done speaking. “Except for the fact that it won’t work.”

“Excuse me?” Ren says, rounding on Hux.

“Here we go again.” Finn says, sighing.

“You heard me,” Hux continues. He’s always pushed Ren, and he’s not going to stop now. If it were only Ren on the mission, he wouldn’t argue. Let the fool rush in and die for all he cares. But they’ll be sending in other troops as well, and they shouldn’t be wasted so senselessly. “It’s a stupid plan, Ren. Not every problem can be solved by barging in with a lightsaber.”

“Careful, _General_.”

Hux grits his teeth, and doesn’t rise to the cheap bait of Ren’s taunt.

“He’s got a point,” Dameron cuts in, from across the table. “I think a bit of subtlety might be helpful with this one.”

Ren rounds on Dameron. “Stay out of it.”

Dameron crosses his arms, and takes a step towards Ren. “Or what?”

“If we can stay focussed, please,” Finn cuts in, before the disagreement can devolve any further and turn into a brawl. “Rey, what do you think?”

The girl looks almost sheepish. “I actually agree with Hux and Poe.”

Now that surprises Hux. There might be hope for the girl, after all.

Ren, meanwhile, is absolutely affronted. “Seriously?”

“They’re right, Ben. We should wait.” The girl says, trying to appease him. Ren is having none of it, though.

“They might not be there if we wait.” Ren argues. He’s trying to hold it together, but it’s clear his composure is slipping.

“I’m not putting my people at risk,” Dameron cuts in, to Ren. “You can wait, or go alone. Choice is yours.”

Ren says nothing. Instead, he leans forward against the table, studying the holoprojection of the base. Hux knows that look. It means Ren is actually considering going alone.

It’s not that Ren’s completely incapable of subtlety or ingenuity. After all, the force user is an intelligent man, and can be quite clever and crafty when the situation requires it. No, this is pure arrogance. Ren firmly believes he can just walk into the base and cut his enemies down.

“Don’t be stupid, Ren,” Hux says, not even trying to hide the derision in his voice. “It’s obvious which is the better course of action.” 

“Shut up!” Ren orders. The lights in the room flicker.

“Make me.” Hux hisses back. He has no patience for Ren’s immature theatrics today.

Ren crosses the room and suddenly, he’s all up in his space, taut and ready for a fight. Hux stands his ground. There had been a time, long ago, when Ren’s fits with the force unnerved him, possibly even _alarmed_ him. But Hux has nothing to lose here, and consequently, Ren’s threats no longer worry him.

For a moment, neither of them moves, and then Ren storms out, like the brat he is.

“Must you do this?” The girl cuts in, a few moments later. “Winding him up all the time?”

“He’s the one who behaves like a child when he doesn’t get his way!” Hux argues back. “Stars, he’s frustrating.”

She rolls her eyes and turns to Finn.

“I’ll go talk to him, convince him this is the best idea.”

“Thanks Rey,” Finn says, as the girl leaves to chase after Ren. “Hux, can you stay behind? I need help with something.”

“Of course General,” Hux says. The request is a surprise, but he keeps it to himself. “How can I be of assistance?”

“I want to get a message to the stormtroopers,” Finn says. “All of them, through the Stormtrooper messenger channels.”

Well, it’s certainly ambitious, he’ll give them that.

As with many aspects of the Stormtrooper program, Hux had designed the channels himself. They were mainly just used to send formal communications – information about schedules, missions, and of course propaganda.

“Those channels are routinely surveyed for seditious content,” Hux explains. Or they should be, at least. “There are also numerous firewalls to prevent outside interference. But, you already know all of this. So why bother asking?”

“Because, as a former Officer, you would know how these channels are monitored, and possibly, how to get around them.” Finn states. “You were also in charge of the Stormtrooper program. You know these channels well.”

“The upkeep of the channels was left to lower ranking officers,” Hux states.

“All I’m asking is if there’s a way around,” Finn says. “You led the program, Hux. If anyone would know, it’s you.”

Hux pauses, considering what to say. He designs everything with a kill switch, and the stormtrooper communication channels are no different. But, he cannot allow the Resistance to get any messages in.

He still has faith in his program. Even if they’re faced with Resistance propaganda, he has no doubt that _most_ of the stormtroopers will stay loyal to the Order. It’s the ‘most’ that’s the problem. Finn himself had only been a single traitor, and yet look at all the damage he’s caused. Even if only a handful of stormtroopers prove to be disloyal, it would cause a massive problem for the Order.

So why take the risk?

Hux chooses his next words carefully.

“Not that I know of,” Hux lies. “Like I said, the system was designed to be impenetrable to outside interference.”

Finn regards him for a moment.

“Okay,” Finn says, handing him a datapad. “Could you take a look over the code, then? See if you can find a flaw?”

“Of course, General.” Hux replies. He’s unsure whether that’s an order or not. Even if it is, he can delay and stall the project long enough that he’ll be gone before the Resistance gets the chance to utilise it.

“Thank you, Hux.” Finn says, genuinely, and that throws him even more.

***

Hux is reviewing intel on his datapad when Ren comes storming into the rec room.

It’s late at night. Hux has been having more trouble sleeping recently, his nightmares growing worse and more vivid. The lack of rest is beginning to get to him. He can feel his exhaustion, and how his mind isn’t as quick as it should be.

It’s obviously not ideal, but then again, neither are night terrors. He just needs to get his hands on some stims, and he’ll be able to manage it.

Ren is in rough shape as well. Hux can tell just by looking at him that he’s barely keeping it together. He holds himself taut, tightly coiled, ready for a fight. There’s static in the air too, like just before a lightning strike.

Hux briefly wonders what could have set Ren off this time. Surely, he’s not still mad about their disagreement at the mission briefing. Most likely, it’s something to do with Ap’lek. Despite their best efforts, tracking him has been nigh on impossible. Ren, it appears, has been taking this personally, never missing an opportunity to vent his frustration over not being able to locate his former knight turned rival.

Alternatively, it could be something to do with the scavenger girl. More than once, Hux has seen the two of them argue about Ren’s methods when it comes to fighting the Final Order. And although he hadn’t witnessed it personally, they apparently had a pretty public argument earlier that evening about exactly that. Whatever the cause, Ren is clearly in a foul mood.

But that has never stopped Hux from pushing before.

“Trouble in paradise?”

He obviously made a miscalculation over just how unstable Ren is that night, because one moment, he’s in his seat. The next, there’s nothing except sudden and sharp pain as he’s thrown against the wall with the power of the force. He hits the ground, hard enough that the breath is knocked from his lungs.

It’s all too similar to what happened to him, back at the battle of Crait.

“What’s your problem?!” Hux wheezes in fury at Ren, once he catches his breath back enough to speak.

The rage leeches out of Ren, all at once.

“Sorry.” Ren says, quiet and sincere. The words surprise Hux. In the ten years that he has known Ren, never once has he ever heard the force user apologise, for _anything_.

“Seriously, get a hold of yourself!” Hux spits, as he pushes himself back into a sitting position. The movement sends pain shooting through his torso. Hopefully he hasn’t broken anything, this time.

Ren says nothing, just collapses against the wall opposite him. He still looks absolutely miserable, somehow shrinking in on himself.

Hux shouldn’t care. After all, Ren’s the one who just threw him into a wall. He should just get up, cuss Ren out one last time, and then head back to his room, leaving the force user to languish in his own misery and sorrow.

Hux sighs.

“Are you going to tell me what the problem is, or just keep brooding?”

Ren looks at him, surprise written across his face. His voice is barely above a whisper when he finally speaks. “When I was with the dark side, the light pulled at me incessantly. And now I’m in the light, the dark pulls me back.”

Stars, Ren can be so melodramatic. About this, about _everything_.

“I’m afraid I don’t see what the problem is.”

“I’m being torn--”

“So stop being torn,” Hux says, like he’s speaking to a child. If Ren is going to behave like one, then he’s going to treat him like one. “You’re obviously not completely one or the other. Find the balance.”

Ren looks at him incredulously, and half confused.

“I can’t do that.” Ren says.

“Of course you can,” Hux says. He doesn’t know how all of this mystical force stuff works, but surely, it’s not that difficult. Even from their earliest meeting, he could tell that Ren was conflicted, and not completely committed to their cause. Ren doesn’t belong completely to either the light or the dark, he is something in between.

Perhaps _this_ is the root cause of Ren’s instability. The inability to embrace fully what he has always been.

“Nobody is completely light or dark,” Hux continues, as he pushes himself to his feet. His side aches from the strain, but he still has full movement. No breaks then, but he would certainly be bruised the next morning. “And despite everything you’ve been told your whole life, you’re no different. Find the balance, and _get it together_ , Ren.”

As Hux moves towards the door, Ren speaks.

“Hux,” Ren says, softly. “I really am sorry.”

Hux won’t say it’s okay or he’s forgiven, because it’s not and he isn’t. _And I still despise him_ , he thinks, although it feels empty. He just walks out, leaving Ren to his revelations.

***

“Hux,” Dameron says, interrupting him from his work. Trailing behind him is the orange and white astromech droid that accompanies him almost everywhere he goes. “You ever flown an X-Wing before?”

“Why?” Hux asks, putting down the datapad he’s working on. He has to admit, he’s curious.

“I need help with something off-base,” Dameron replies, surprisingly taciturn.

Hux is torn. He never goes into a situation blind. Not to mention, Dameron personally commands the entire fleet of pilots. If he’s asking for him, he wants him specifically. But the thought of leaving the base, even for just a few hours, is a tempting one.

“Look, the fleet is away at Beisell-5, and this mission is time sensitive,” Dameron explains, seeing his uncertainty. “The only other competent pilot on base is Kylo, and I really don’t want to have to ask him.”

Hux gets it. He would sooner pull out his own teeth than ask Ren for help with anything. Interesting, though, how Dameron still refers to Ren as Kylo, even when everyone else calls him Ben.

“You still call him Kylo,” Hux remarks. 

“Well, he’s sure as hell not Ben,” Dameron seethes, and it clicks, then. Dameron had grown up around the base, as had Ren. At the very least they knew each other as children, if they hadn’t been closer. Dameron’s grudge towards Ren is personal. “Now, are you in, or not?”

“Of course, General. Lead the way,” Hux says. He quickly sends a message to Tico, asking her to take care of Valerius in his absence. “Who else will be accompanying us on this mission?”

“It’s just gonna be you, me, and one of my other pilots.” Dameron replies, as they walk towards the airfield. “Like I said, the fleet is out right now. Jorgan was supposed to be the third, but he’s injured.”

That makes Hux pause. He cannot believe that a General is about to head out on a field mission. Except, he can, because the Resistance prides itself on doing things that are foolhardy and dangerous, apparently. “Permission to speak, General Dameron.”

“Okay, Hux,” Dameron says, stopping, and facing him. “This is the Resistance. You don’t need to ask for permission to speak.”

Dameron’s interruption throws him, more than a bit.

“If I may make a suggestion,” Hux says, after a moment. The lack of formal protocol is so starkly different to the Order.

“Shoot.”

“Is the mission truly that critically important?” Hux asks. It should be obvious, after all. If they’re captured, then the Resistance will have lost one of their most valuable pieces. He tries not to think about what would happen to him. He’s already beginning to re-think his decision to participate in the mission, but he won’t back out of it now. “It’s not advisable that the General of any military force participate in ground operations.”

“We’ll be fine. With the fleet at Beisell-5, the Final Order will be distracted, anyway,” Dameron assures, waving his hand dismissively. “Anyway, the Resistance has two Generals. If something happens to me, then Finn will just come and rescue me.”

Hux rolls his eyes. Dameron has completely missed the point.

“And anyway,” Dameron continues, either unaware of his impertinence or ignoring it. “Every time the Order has caught me, it’s turned out pretty well.”

“Is that right?”

“I mean, the first time, I came back with a stormtrooper, and the second time, with a General. Who knows? Maybe next time, I’ll bring back Ap’lek.” 

Now that would certainly be something to see. He isn’t quite sure how to respond to that, though, so he just continues to follow. They come to a stop on the edge of the airfield, where a woman is waiting. As soon as she recognises him, she scowls, and crosses her arms.

“Hux, this is Jessika Pava,” Dameron introduces. Pava does not look impressed with his presence. No one in the Resistance ever does, so he’s not sure what he’s really expecting.

“Really, we’re bringing him?” Pava says, crossing her arms.

Dameron sighs. “With Jorgan out, it’s either him or Kylo.”

Beside him, the orange and white droid chirps in binary. “ _I don’t trust him. He will run at the first opportunity_.”

Funny, that a simple droid shows more sense than most people around the base.

“Don’t be so negative, BeeBee.” Dameron says, to the droid.

“For the record, I agree with BeeBee on this one,” Pava states.

“Well, we’ll see, either way,” Dameron says, and Hux isn’t sure what to make of the whole exchange. “Let’s go.”

***

They land in a bustling space port on some mid-rim planet.

Once he depowers the X-Wing, Hux pulls his helmet off and sighs, leaning back against the headrest. That got a bit close at points, there. He probably shouldn’t have agreed to come on the mission, but he can’t deny that he hasn’t felt this alive in a long while, either.

After a few moments, he feels less frayed, and he exits his spacecraft.

“Come with me on a mission, Jess,” Pava mocks, mimicking Dameron’s voice and pitch. “It’ll be easy, Jess.”

“Okay, I’ll admit, the tie-fighters were a surprise,” Dameron concedes.

“Surprise is an understatement,” Hux states. It had taken them hours to lose the Order patrol. “Do you think they’ve tracked us?”

“Probably not, but we’ll lay low for a bit, just to be sure,” Dameron says. “Jess and I are gonna go grab something to eat while we wait. Wanna come with?”

“No, I’ll stay here.” Hux replies. He has no interest in socialising with them any more than is necessary.

“Suit yourself,” Dameron says, as he, Pava, and the droid head off. Hux settles in and begins going over some reports. He keeps his hood up, since his hair is such a noticeable colour. If he does a field mission again, he’ll have to dye it. He really is too recognisable to be out.

The sky darkens as night rolls in. It brings with it brilliant aurorae that illuminate the atmosphere, painting the sky in red and orange, with strains of yellow and gold.

He stares at them, fascinated. Starkiller Base had its own aurorae, but these are different. Not only are the colours distinctive, they’re far more vivid as well. Hux wonders what causes them – they were far from the planetary poles, after all. In his thirty years with the First Order, he had been subjected to every form of training required for a senior officer. But even then, they had never been able to subdue his natural curiosity.

He’s so mesmerised by them, that he’s taken completely by surprise when someone speaks to him.

“You’re not from around here, are you?”

Hux grips his blaster as he turns towards the person speaking. They’re an older human male, easily in his seventies or eighties. One of his eyes is milky white, and between his poor vision and the darkness, he probably doesn’t recognise who he’s speaking to. Nevertheless, Hux keeps his grip tight on his blaster.

“No,” Hux replies, changing his pitch just enough to hide his recognisable voice. “I’m from the Outer Rim.”

Arkanis is, after all, in the Outer Rim.

“A traveller then.” The man surmises.

“Something like that. How could you tell?

“From the way you were staring at the aurorae.”

“They are beautiful,” Hux states, because they are.

“I suppose they are,” The man says. “Do you know what causes them?”

Hux knows they are caused by disturbances in a planet’s magnetosphere, usually by solar wind. But, he’ll humour the older man. “Can’t say I do.”

“We’re two lightyears away from where the Hosnian System was,” The man explains, almost gently. Hux meanwhile, is filled with dread. “The lights are caused by the energy ripples from Starkiller base.”

For a brief moment, the paranoid part of him thinks that Dameron’s done this one purpose. That this is some sort of test or punishment. But they’re only on this planet because it had been the closest place they could hide from the Final Order fleet. This is nothing more than cosmic coincidence, but an unwelcome one at that.

Blind to his internal strife, the man continues. “Up until a few weeks ago, if you had a telescope powerful enough, you would still see Hosnian Prime.”

_And Starkiller Base_ , Hux thinks. He can scarcely believe that all of that had happened two years earlier. Some days, it feels like only yesterday.

“Huh,” is all he can bring himself to mutter out, as he watches the aurorae with a new sense of dread. He steadfastly ignores the tight feeling in his gut that feels suspiciously like regret.

***

It occurs to him, as they’re flying back to the Resistance base, that he could do it. He could make a break for it, right now, and they wouldn’t be able to stop him.

But what good would it do him?

Ap’lek is still in command of the Final Order, and he had no desire to be commanded by another potentially unstable force user. Never mind the fact that if he returned as is, he’d be tried as a traitor. No one in high command who would even hear him out. He could try to find Order off-shoots that would still be loyal to him, but he had no idea where they would be or how to get to them.

Hux hits the console and snarls in frustration.

“You okay there, Hux?” Poe asks, through their comm channel.

“I’m fine.” Hux replies, through gritted teeth. He would have to bide his time, at least for now.

***

When they get back to the Resistance base, Ren is waiting for them.

He’s the last person Hux wants to see. The rest of the trip back had been uneventful, which just allowed his already sour mood to fester. The force user is leaning against the wall near the entrance, but straightens up once he sees them. Beside him, Dameron and Pava tense.

“Where have you been?” Ren asks, or more demands.

“Not sure how it’s your business,” Dameron replies, with uncharacteristic contempt. “but we were on a mission.”

Ren scowls. “I wasn’t talking to you.”

“My whereabouts concern you how, Ren?” Hux asks curtly, trying to keep his anger in check. Fuck Ren. How dare he behave like this. He isn’t the Supreme Leader anymore. He doesn’t get to order him around, or tell him what he can and can’t do. “If you must know, I was on a mission with pilot Pava and General Dameron,”

“He helped us retrieve a data core from Corrida,” Dameron elaborates, throwing his arm over Hux’s shoulder, pulling him closer in the process. He tries not to flinch at the unexpected contact.

“You’re a pilot?” Ren asks.

“I was a General, Ren,” Hux replies, rather tersely. “It may be a surprise to you, but I have many skills. Piloting is one of them.”

“Is that right?” Ren says, his tone rather dry. “I’m sure you’re great at that, too.”

“Yeah, he is,” Dameron cuts in, before Hux has the chance to retort. “You should have been there. We were ambushed by a whole patrol of tie fighters, but he kept his head and had amazing aim. He’s a real asset to the team.”

Hux is absolutely floored by Dameron’s praise, and glancing at Pava, she’s just as surprised as well. Ren meanwhile is just staring at Dameron, shocked by the pilot’s audacity.

Suddenly, Hux gets it. This isn’t about genuine praise, this is just Dameron trying to rile Ren. And really, who is he to deny anyone that?

“You flatter me, General,” Hux says, playing into Dameron’s little game.

“Please, call me Poe,” Dameron insists, and Ren’s expression changes from general disdain for the situation to that wild look in his eyes he gets right before he runs his lightsaber through something.

“Poe, we should get going,” Pava says, obviously trying to prevent a fight before it happens.

“Yeah, we really need to get this data core to Beaumont,” Dameron says, stepping back. “Great chat Kylo, we should do this again sometime.”

Pava and Dameron turn to leave, but Hux lingers. “A word, Ren.”

“What?” Ren seethes, his patience obviously wearing thin.

“This is not the First Order, and you are not the Supreme Leader anymore,” Hux hisses, his voice pure venom. “Do not presume to control me.”

“I don’t presume anything.” Ren all but snarls back.

“Good.” Hux snaps, before following Pava and Dameron out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, Kylo presumes something, alright 😉
> 
> Anyway, apologies for the delay. The last section took me literally four complete rewrites before I was happy with it. This is also turning into more of a slowburn than I was anticipating - we’ll get to the Kylux content, I promise.
> 
> As always, thanks for all the subscriptions, kudos, and comments. If you wanna chat kylux (or fandom more generally), come find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/anoptimistprime) or [Tumblr](https://an-optimist-prime.tumblr.com/) 🖤🧡


	5. Chapter 5

“What have we got this time?” Tico asks, as she takes a seat at the table opposite him.

“A security upgrade to the communications array I’ve been working on,” Hux replies, sliding a datapad towards her. “And yourself?”

“Some engine upgrades,” Tico says, handing over her own datapad.

Silence falls between them as they assess each other’s blueprints. They meet like this at least once a week, swapping blueprints and proofreading designs and coding. 

Over time, he’s slowly learned more about the woman. Her family was from Hays Minor, and she has a sister who she only ever speaks of in the past tense. No surprise then, that while Tico is less hostile towards him than she used to be, she’s still rather distant and cold. Hux doubts anything will ever change that.

“Have you tried re-routing the sub-converters?” Hux asks, as he finishes studying Tico’s blueprints.

“That could work,” Tico says, quickly scribbling down some notes. “I couldn’t find any errors in yours, but I did make a few suggestions in the coding.”

“Was there anything else you needed me to look at?” Hux asks, taking back his data pad. Tico hesitates for a moment, obviously weighing up whether she wants to tell him.

“No,” Tico says, her eyes not meeting his. “That’s everything.”

***

Hux isn’t sure how or why it’s happened, but Ren makes a habit of joining him in the evenings.

He supposes it shouldn’t be a complete surprise. Over time, they’ve fallen into a strange form of comradery. Neither of them gets on that well with the other members of the Resistance, and they both tend to be awake at night, when the base is quiet. That isn’t to say they’re friends, or anything of the sort. Their mutual hostility is still there, always there, simmering under the surface. But, there are times where they can share the same space and be almost civil about it.

Like now, for instance.

“How’d the mission go?” Hux asks. Despite their earlier disagreement, they had gone with his plan, and waited a few weeks. It had been successful, of course, but he still wanted to know how things had unfolded out on the ground.

“As well as can be expected,” Ren answers, taking a seat beside him. They’re up on the roof of one of the new base’s outbuildings. It’s where Hux goes when he needs quiet, the location chosen mostly because it’s difficult to access. In that regard, he shouldn’t be surprised that Ren joins him so often. Something being difficult has never dissuaded Ren before, if anything it spurs him on. “One of Ap’lek’s apprentices was there. I killed him.”

“You sure you got them this time?” Hux asks, only half teasing.

“I cut his head off, so I’m pretty fucking sure,” Ren replies, his tone clipped. “Rey’s not happy about that.”

“War is war. It’s kill or be killed. She grew up as a scavenger on Jakku. She ought to know that better than most.”

“She thinks we should have tried to save him,” Ren explains. “Brought him over to the light.”

Hux rolls his eyes. What a classic example of typical Resistance thinking. The worst part, though, is that he’s spent enough time around the girl to know she’s genuine about it. It somehow infuriates him more.

“Your girlfriend is remarkably naïve if she thinks she can bring everyone over to the Resistance.”

“She’s not my girlfriend.”

“Partner, dyad, whatever,” Hux acquiesces. It’s just semantics. It makes little difference what Ren wants to call his relationship with the scavenger. “The sentiment remains. She is naïve.”

Ren hums in agreement but says nothing else. Sometimes, their evenings would pass in complete silence. Minutes pass before Ren speaks again.

“Were you really going to shoot me?” Ren asks, quietly.

“What?” Hux replies. Of all the things for Ren to say, he wasn’t expecting that.

“You said once, that you should have shot me,” Ren explains. “When did you even have the chance?”

“Ahh yes, that. In Snoke’s chambers,” Hux says, remembering both that conversation and the moment in the chamber. “He was dead, and you were unconscious. I hesitated, and that was my mistake.”

He never hesitates, and it’s that realisation which concerns him. All of his enemies, he’s killed without a second thought. He didn’t even waver when it came to poisoning his father. And yet, when Ren had been lying on the floor of the throne room, he could not pull the trigger. It would have been so easy to wipe out his greatest opponent while he wasn’t able to fight back, and then seize power for himself.

It should have been easy.

Why did he pause when it came to Ren?

“You saved me once, too.” Ren says, quietly, almost as if he were speaking to himself.

“I didn’t think you remembered.” Hux admits, because it’s true.

Hux, however, remembers the last day of Starkiller well.

_Starkiller base is falling. His greatest creation, his triumph, is crumbling around him. The sight of it fills him with fury and grief. He’s failed, a lifetime of work collapsing in the space of a few minutes, and it aches like a kick to the stomach. He can hear his father’s voice in his head._

Useless boy. Always a failure.

_He pushes the thoughts to the side. He needs to find Ren. If he doesn’t, he may as well go down with his creation. Their Supreme Leader is not a merciful creature, and Hux doesn’t want to find out what will happen if he returns without his prized apprentice._

_He sees him, then, in a clearing. Ren lies on the ground, completely still. Hux rushes over as dread seizes him. If Ren is dead, then so is he._

_As he reaches Ren, he surveys his injuries. There’s a gruesome wound to his side, which has stained the surrounding snow a worrying shade of red. There’s a deep cut across his face as well, clearly inflicted by a lightsaber. Hux can hardly believe it. How could a scavenger girl with no training have done this?_

_Hux kneels beside him and tries to fight down his rising panic. Ren’s skin is far too pale and pallid._

_It strikes him suddenly, just how young Ren looks._

_“Ren!” Hux hisses, as he places his hand on Ren’s chest. Ren can’t be dead, not like this. “Wake up! We need to leave!”_

_Beneath his palm, he feels Ren’s chest rise, just barely. Hux breathes a sigh of relief._

_There’s still the matter of getting Ren back to the escape shuttle. They don’t have any time to waste. Hux grabs Ren’s arm and drapes it over his own, before hauling him up in one swift motion. His muscles ache from the strain and he almost over balances._

_Ren gasps as they stand. Hux hopes it’s a good sign._

_“Hux?” Ren asks, his voice raspy._

_“Yes,” Hux replies. Ren is a deadweight against him as Hux starts guiding them towards the shuttle._

_“I failed.” Ren mutters, barely above a whisper._

_“We both did,” Hux says, more exhausted than bitter. Under normal circumstances, he would never admit weakness in front of Ren, but he doubts Ren will even remember their conversation. “Let’s just get to the shuttle.”_

Ren had never mentioned any part of it before, so Hux had assumed that the force user had simply forgotten.

“Well, I do,” Ren insists. “It was you who rescued me from Starkiller.”

“What’s your point, Ren?” Hux asks, his tone clipped. Whatever Ren’s playing at, he doesn’t like it.

“So, which is it?” Ren asks, his stare piercing. “Do you want me dead or alive?”

Hux doesn’t know the answer, which shocks and frustrates him all in one. Ren had cost him everything. The answer should be clear.

Ren moves closer, and Hux is suddenly struck by just how pretty Ren is. It’s not a new observation. He’s known that Ren was attractive for years, from the moment he’d seen him take off his atrocious helmet for the first time. But, right now, it’s hitting him with an intensity that’s both new, and impossible to ignore.

“I’m too tired for this,” Hux says instead, because he must be, if he’s entertaining thoughts of just how _pretty_ Ren is. Especially when such thoughts are unreciprocated. He stands, leaving Ren to continue whatever he’s up to. It’s then that he realises that this may be the most civil conversation the two of them have ever had, up to this point.

“Ren?” Hux says, looking back.

Ren turns to face him. “Yes?”

“I hate you.” Hux says, his tone waspish. Maybe, if he says it with enough conviction, he’ll believe it too. After all, hating people is so much easier than any of the alternatives.

“I know.” Ren replies, quietly.

***

The next day, he agrees to go on another mission with Dameron and Pava, partially because he wants more time away from the base, and partially because it upsets Ren so much.

They’re in a modified light freighter, designed to be inconspicuous but deceptively powerful, on a simple mission to retrieve a drop from one of their informants. Pava is somewhere in the back of the ship, prepping for the mission ahead. Hux himself is sitting in the co-pilot chair while Dameron speaks to one of the senior officers of the New Republic High Command, the acting First Senator Marvik Tann. They’d received an urgent call from Tann just as they had left, and Dameron had decided to deal with it before they got too far out from base.

“So it’s settled,” First Senator Tann says, his voice leaving no room for argument. “We’ll attack the Order outpost on Ankett’el, in a weeks’ time.” 

“Copy that, I’ll ensure the Resistance fleet is ready,” Dameron replies.

“We’ll be in contact again, to plan the specifics,” Tann states. “Also, General Dameron, I know you’ve been putting it off, but we really must speak about the situation with the--”

“I’m sorry, you’re breaking up! We’re going into a tunnel!” Dameron cuts in, as he makes some static noises before hitting the end call button. Whatever that had been about, Dameron very clearly did not want to discuss it then and there.

“Tunnels,” Hux says, his tone rather dry, because really, it’s behaviour unbecoming of a General. “We’re in the deep void of space.”

“Yes we are.”

“Does that excuse often work, General?” Hux asks, mildly amused despite himself.

“More often that you’d expect,” Dameron replies. “And I was serious the other day, call me Poe.”

When Hux says nothing in response, Dameron – Poe – speaks again. “What do you want, Hux?”

“Excuse me?” Hux replies, unsure of just what Poe is asking.

“I’m just trying to work out why you defected,” Poe explains. “I mean, handing in everything just to screw over Kylo? I don’t buy that.”

“Why not? It’s true.”

“Because I think we’re too alike,” Poe explains. “And I wouldn’t sell out the Resistance just to get the upper hand over someone I didn’t like.”

“Well, what do you want?” Hux asks, trying to spin the question back on him. Poe is dangerously close to realising the truth, and his place in the Resistance is still so precarious.

“Peace,” Poe replies, not missing a beat. “Freedom from tyranny, the ability to govern ourselves--”

Hux can’t help but scoff. “Need I remind you that the Republic elected the first Supreme Chancellor? Besides, freedom means nothing when people are quite literally dying of malnutrition, as many were in the Outer Rim.”

“And the Order cares about the people of the Outer Rim?” Poe replies, suddenly combative.

“More than the Republic ever did,” Hux retorts. This is not an argument he will be swayed in. The Republic liked to pretend they were above the Empire and the Order, but they were all the same. They used the same tactics, and let the core worlds grow richer while the Outer Rim suffered. “The First Order have them sustenance, work, a purpose--”

“Yeah, and they stole their planets, resources, and _children_ from them, and worked them into an early grave for it, and that’s not even including the horror of the Hosnian System,” Poe cuts in. “The New Republic might not be perfect, but it’s better than that.”

There’s no point arguing, Hux knows, because he’ll never convince Poe of the New Republic’s weakness.

“You enjoy picking fights, don’t you Dameron?” He asks, instead.

“Sometimes,” Poe admits, smiling wryly. “You never answered my question. What do you want from all this?”

He’s obviously not going to let him get out of it. So, he humours the pilot’s question. It’s something he’s never really had to think about before. Before, there was only the Order, and it wasn’t to be questioned.

“Stability and security,” Hux begins, intentionally avoiding the word order, although that would describe it well. After a moment, he adds, “Safety.”

“And you think the Final Order can provide that?” Poe asks, determined and Hux wonders when this mission turned into an interrogation.

“I used to.” Hux says carefully. If he’s being honest, he’s not sure that any side can provide that, at this rate. The decadence, greed, and rampant corruption of both the New and Old Republics rule them out, and between having Ap’lek and a range of old Imperials at the helm of the Final Order, they’re unlikely to flourish either. “Why do you ask?”

“Because,” Poe replies, surprisingly sincere. “I think we have way more in common than you’d probably like to admit.” 

***

It often rains on Natana.

He finds it reminds him of Arkanis. His father had taken him from his home planet when he was a young child, and he’s virtually lived on ships ever since. He remembers the storms and the rain though, the distinct scent of lingering petrichor still familiar even after so many years away. It’s calming, in a way he hadn’t been expecting. Hux wonders if the rains are a seasonal thing, or if it’s like this all year round. If they stay at the base for long enough, he might find out.

If he stays here long enough.

His attention is pulled from his datapad to the scavenger girl. She’s out in the rain, absolutely beaming, not caring that she’s being drenched to the bone. The girl is often out when it rains. After a lifetime on Jakku, it must still be a novelty. She even spins around in it a bit, like a child. He huffs in amusement, and the girl stops abruptly, once she spots him.

“How long have you been there?” The scavenger asks, clearly embarrassed at having been caught.

“The whole time. I was here _first_.” Hux specifies, lest she think he’s following her around, or something. The last thing he needs right now is Ren getting set on him.

“You don’t mind the rain?” The girl asks, as she steps out of the rain and talks towards him.

“It reminds me of Arkanis,” Hux replies. “My birth planet.”

The girl stares at him curiously, as if she’s trying to size him up.

“Stay out of my head.” Hux snaps, before she gets any ideas.

“You’re very paranoid about that,” The girl states, surprisingly observant. “And I’m not trying to, by the way.”

“Nobody wants their mind read,” Hux states, suppressing a shudder. Snoke would just rip through his mind until he found what he wanted. How could someone with that kind of power not do it? “I know force users. They use their tricks to get what they want.”

“You’ve known dark force users,” the girl counters. “Not all of us do that, you know.”

Hux doesn’t respond. He has nothing to say to that, although she does sound genuine. When the girl doesn’t leave after a few minutes, he speaks up again. “Well, what do you want, then?”

“I’m trying to understand you.” The girl replies.

“What is there to understand?” Hux says, confused by her comment. “I am what I am.”

“Maybe,” The girl muses, before she leaves.

***

He meets with Tico at their usual place and time.

“What have you been working on?” Hux asks. He doesn’t have a project of his own at the moment, with all of his time and energy consumed by his current assignment. But Tico had messaged him earlier that day, saying she needed something looked over, so he’d agreed to meet.

“A side project of mine. I call it the Paiger.” Tico says, handing him the datapad. “Just…keep it quiet, please. I haven’t talked to Finn or Poe about it yet.”

It takes him a moment to fully process exactly what he’s looking at. “This is a proton bomb.”

“It is.” Tico replies.

Hux skims through the calculations. “It’s easily three times more powerful than any comparable weapon that the Order has.”

“If I’ve gotten the calculations right.” Tico says. Knowing her, she almost certainly has. He supposes he couldn’t really be surprised at this. Anyone with the audacity to bite the person holding them prisoner no doubt has more spine than they show.

“I’ve been working on it for a while,” Tico continues. “I just wasn’t sure if I could trust you or not.”

“And now you do?”

“Yes. Poe says we can trust you, and I trust him. Besides, you could have run by now, but you haven’t.”

That might be true, but he’s not keen to acknowledge it.

“Paiger?” Hux asks, eager to change the subject. It is, after all, an interesting name for such a powerful weapon.

“It’s named after my sister,” Tico admits, quietly.

“Ah. Fair enough,” Hux says, making a mental note to take the plans with him when he leaves. “Well, I’ll look it over and get back to you.”

***

The airfield is chaotic as the last of the starfighters limp back to base from the attack on Ankett’el. It’s their first real loss of the war post-Exegol and the Resistance is feeling it. All hands are on deck, helping repair the heavily damaged fleet. Hell, even Ren is there.

Hux is no exception, although it’s another reminder to leave sooner rather than later. He’s pulled from his thoughts when Poe calls out from on top of his Starfighter. “Hey Hux, come help me with this.”

“Of course, General Dameron,” Hux replies, grabbing a toolbelt and hoisting himself up the side of the fighter. Poe is still in his flight suit after having led the attack, the General having not taken a break for himself before jumping straight into the next task.

“You take a lot of field missions yourself,” Hux says. He’s brought it up before, how ill-advised it is for the commander of any force to participate in front-line operations.

Poe shrugs.

“I like to lead by example,” Poe says, as he works intently on some wiring. “The Resistance is bigger than any one person. How can I expect anyone to believe in that if it doesn’t apply to me as well?”

Hux finds, to his surprise, that he understands. People are gears, and the machine, whether it be the Order or the Resistance, is bigger than any one person. After all, even he had been raised knowing that someday, he would give his life for the Order. To the Order, everyone is expendable.

“Besides,” Poe continues, quieter. “I don’t like risking my people. I’ve made mistakes before, gotten good people killed. Better it’s me than them.”

Hux wonders if Dameron genuinely believes he’s that expendable, or if he’s just saying that. Either way, they work in silence after that. It’s a sunny day on Natana, one of the rare days where the sky is completely cloudless. The afternoon sun beams down relentlessly, and before long, Hux has shrugged off both his jacket and shirt, leaving him in only his tank shirt. The warm sun is surprisingly pleasant on his bare shoulders, but he’ll have to be careful that he doesn’t burn.

He gets lost in the work. It’s comparatively mindless, but it gives him something to do. Time passes, and he’s only pulled from his focus when Poe huffs in amusement.

“Looks like we’ve got an admirer,” Poe says, gesturing to their side.

Hux turns around to see Ren staring at him, the force user quickly turning his gaze away once caught. Hux tries to ignore it, and focusses back on his work. After a while though, he can practically feel eyes back on him.

“He’s looking again, isn’t he?” Hux asks.

“Yep.” Poe replies, clearly amused by the whole situation. “He’s been doing it for a while, now.”

Hux sighs. The force user is behaving stranger than usual, and that says a lot about Ren. He’s probably planning something. Whatever the case, Hux will deal with it later. Right now, the priority is to get the fleet back to operational.

Poe looks between Hux and Ren a few times, brow creased in consideration.

“Oh huh,” Poe says, with dawning realisation.

“What?” Hux asks.

“Don’t worry about it,” Poe replies, with a smirk that’s almost devious. “I just worked something out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone. Apologies again for the delay on this chapter. Huxloween, graduate applications and grief have just stolen all of my time over the last few months. There were also two scenes here I got really stuck on, so any feedback is welcome.
> 
> Either way, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. As always, a huge thank you to all who have left kudos, commented, subscribed and shared my fic. It keeps me going, guys.
> 
> (Also, fun fact: [the ](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Paiger) [ Paiger ](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Paiger) is canon! All hail Rose Tico, secret badass of the Resistance!)

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Expensive Mistakes!
> 
> Updates should come every fortnight, if not sooner. Please drop a comment if you can :)
> 
> Also, if you wanna chat kylux with me, you can find me on [Tumblr](https://an-optimist-prime.tumblr.com/) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/anoptimistprime).


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